2 Ingredient GARLIC NAAN

Every now and then, it's great to indulge in something delicious which might not be super healthy, but the fun of it is worth it! 

Typically, Indian flat bread "Naan" is made of plain flour so while changing to whole wheat flour makes it much healthier, the use of plain flour still gives the authentic flavour and texture. So talking about being indulgent, I tried to make one of our favourites, Garlic Naan in a most easy way using just 2 ingredients.

Here it is, my 2 Ingredients GARLIC NAAN:

Ingredients: 1 cup self raising flour (or if using plain flour/maida, add a pinch of baking soda), 1/2 cup thick yogurt/curd. A bit of salt and oil is optional just to mix the dough. For brushing on top of the Naan, some melted butter, garlic paste & chopped coriander.

Make: 

1. In a bowl mix the flour and yogurt together with your hands, add salt if using. The dough should come together nicely but if not, use a bit of milk or oil to help form a soft dough. Cover and leave to rest for about 20 minutes. 

2. Meanwhile, make the mixture for brushing on top by mixing melted butter, garlic paste, coriander in a bowl.

3. Dust some flour and using a rolling pin, roll out small balls of dough into a flatbread shape. Try to roll out as thin as possible. Roast on a hot pan on both sides until golden brown spots appear. Immediately brush the garlic butter mixture.

Enjoy the soft delicious Naans with your favourite sides/curries! 

Masala Puri - Bengaluru style

Anyone from the Indian subcontinent will agree to one thing about food - there is nothing more tantilising and taste-buds satisfying than a spicy, tangy, fresh CHAAT!! Wheather it is a pani puri from the carts or gobi manchurian from a fancy restaurant or good old sev puri made at home, a good Chaat can bring a smile on anyone's face :) 

Every time we visit Bengaluru we make sure we indulge in one of our favourites, MASALA PURI. Being back home sweet home though, it was too tempting not to re-create that Masala Puri magic..so here it is, my version of the very famous Masala Puri, made in a quick and easy way!

Ingredients (for two servings): 1.5 cups of green peas, 1 potato, 1 red onion, 1 tomato, 2 carrots, corriander, few cinnamon sticks, few cloves, salt, chilli powder, chaat powder, 1 spoon tamarind paste, 1 spoon garlic paste, crisp wheat crackers or papdis (Indian wheat biscuits), sev.

Make: In a pan, lightly fry in a spoon of oil, chopped onion and garlic until golden brown. Add cinnamon sticks and cloves and fry lightly. Add the peas and chopped potatoes and 1 carrot chopped with half a glass of water. Add salt and cover. Simmer in low heat for 15 to 20 minutes and you should see the peas and potatoes have cooked well and become very soft. This can also be pressure cooked. Once cooked let it cool a little and transfer all of it except some cooked peas (which is needed later) to a grinder. Grind to a paste then add salt, chilli powder, tamarind paste, chaat masala, the cooked peas from before and mix well.

To assemble Masala Puri, in a plate, make a layer of crispy crackers broken roughly, then pour the masala all over generously. Make a another layer of grated carrot, chopped tomato, chopped onion and few more crackers. Top with corriander and sev. Not only will it look mouth-watering, it will taste amazing with the mix of spicy and tangy flavours!

Pani Puri - Sweet Potato filled!

Any foodlover of the Indian sub continent is bound to share a love for this famed street snack Pani Puri or Golgappa or Pucchka! Crispy light fried semolina balls filled with mouth watering spicy sweet tangy ingredients..there's nothing not to love about these.

It's a super fun treat at our place and it got a little healthier when I tried it with a Sweet Potato filling instead of the traditional Potato. 

Here it is, PANI PURI with Sweet Potato filling:

Ingredients: Fryable Puris (can buy at Indian grocery stores), 1 sweet potato cooked soft, 1 spoon chaat masala, 1 carrot grated, 1 onion chopped finely, handful chopped coriander, some nylon sev. 

For the pani (juice), 1 tbsp coriander mint chutney, chaat masala, 1 tbsp tamarind juice, chillinpowder as desired, water.

Make: Fry the fryable Puris so they are puffed round. Keep aside to cool. Prepare the pani by mixing all of the ingredients well with the water. Adjust the flavour depending on how strong you like the flavour.  Prepare the Sweet Potato filling by mashing it well with chaat masala 

To assemble Pani Puri, take each Puri and gently poke a hole in the middle. Put inside, a spoon of mashed sweet potato, grated carrot, onion, coriander and sev on top. Assemble all Puris and serve with a bowl of Pani so the lucky people can enjoy these packages of happiness! 

Khara Kadabu - Steamed Lentil Dumplings

A traditional dish never goes out of fashion! This definitely applies to age old recipes that are not only delicious but make you nostalgic with memories of enjoying them. 

Khara Kadabu is one of those dishes, traditionally made during festive occasions in North Karnataka, it's nutritious and protein packed.

Here it is, my verison of KHARA KADABU/STEAMED LENTIL DUMPLINGS:

Ingredients: For the filling, 1 cup Channa Daal (split chickpea lentil) soaked for atleast a few hours, 1/4 cup shredded coconut, 1 tbsp crushed ginger, few chillies, handful coriander leaves, 1 tspn tumeric powder, salt to taste.

For covering, 1 cup fine rice flour, 1 tbspn butter/ghee, 1.5 cups water.

Make: First make the covering. In a pan, bring water to boil, add in ghee and just a spoon of the rice flour. Gradually add in all of the rice flour continuously stirring to avoid lumps. Turn off heat and mix it al well, cover and let it rest. 

Next make the filling. In a mixer, put in the soaked lentils and all of the other ingredients as above. Grind it just a little, based on how coarse you like it. We like it smoother, so grind it a little more. 

To make the dumplings, take a golf sized ball of the rice flour dough with lightly greased hands and roll flat using baking paper (as it will stick to rolling pin if rolled directly). Put in 1 spoon of filling and close by pressing gently. Steam all of them in a steamer for about 20 minutes. The dumplings should be soft and bouncy so easy to remove from the steaming plates.

Serve hot with your favourite chutney!

Split Pea Fritters (Ambode)

Those from the southern part of India will be very familiar with the very delicious "Ambode" which promptly takes its place in almost all festival menus! This little treat is also great for the healthy conscious as it is made with yellow split peas (lentil) making it a high protein food.

However there's no short cut to achieving the authentic taste of Ambode, as deep frying is the way to go. Go on, it's ok to indulge in a deep fried treat atleast as it made from healthy ingredients!

So here it is, my version of the famous Ambode/SPLIT PEA FRITTERS: 

Ingredients: 1 cup yellow split peas soaked for 2 to 3 hours, few green chillies, 1 tablespoon fresh chopped ginger, 1 onion chopped (if desired), handful of dill leaves chopped (if desired), handful of chopped fresh coriander and curry leaves, salt to taste, oil for deep frying.

Make: Take the soaked split peas and chopped ginger and grind in a mixer roughly. Ensure it is not a smooth paste (should still have some split peas visible). In a bowl, combine the split peas mixture with chillies, onion if using, salt and green leaves. It should form a firm moist dough which you can shape into small balls then pat into oval shapes. Heat oil and deep fry the fritters until golden brown on each side. 

Serve hot with your favourite chutney or sauce!

Lemon Fried Rice

Lemons lemons everywhere! It's the season for lots of yellow citrus goodness to be hanging from our trees in the garden. Lemons are not only a wonderful choice to help with many common day to day health issues, they also add amazing flavour to almost dish you can add them too.

After lip-smacking lemon pickles, our most favourite savoury lemon dish is the very simple yet deilicous LEMON RICE (commonly known in Bangalore as Chittranna). It's probably the most commonly made rice dish in households and also the most loved. There's a feeling of home associated with this quick and easy dish that South Indians will agree to :)

Here it is my version of the quick and easy, LEMON RICE.

Ingredients: 1 cup cooked rice, the juice from 1 fresh lemon, half cup green peas, 1 onion chopped, handful of curry leaves, handful peanuts (can omit this), 1 small potato chopped. For tempering, 2 chilies finely chopped, 1 teaspoon turmeric powder, 1 teaspoon split peas (channa daal), 1 teaspoon cumin seeds (jeera), 1 teaspoon mustard seeds, 1 tablespoon oil.

Make: In a thick bottom pan, heat the oil for tempering the spices. Add each of the chillies, turmeric powder, split peas, cumin seeds and mustard seeds. When they smell roasted and start to splutter, add peanuts if you choose and add the chopped onions and curry leaves. Saute onions till golden brown then add the green peas and chopped potatoes. Cook for about 8 minutes till soft and add the cooked rice. Add in the fresh lemon juice, salt to taste and toss together (do not pat or mix hard so you keep it all light). Sprinkle with chopped coriander if you wish.  Enjoy hot!

Papad Chaat (Papadum Salsa)

Quick and tasty snacks are often the best but such foods can easily fall into the 'unhealthy' category. If you've got 5 minutes to whip up a fresh and mouth watering snack to please everyone, this is for you. Perfect with a cup of tea or coffee and best shared with your favourite people!

Here is my quick and easy version of PAPAD CHAAT (Papadum Salsa).

Ingredients (for two): 4 or 5 papadams, 2 small potatoes boiled and diced, 1 tomato chopped, chaat masala or chilli powder, salt, lemon juice, sev, coriander for garnish.

Make: Toast papadums in the microwave for quick and oil free taste. In your serving dish, first layer diced boiled potatoes, sprinkle a bit of salt then add a layer of roughly crushed papadum, followed by a layer of chopped tomato. Sprinkle chaat masala or chilli powder. Add a layer of sev and garnish with chopped coriander. Squeeze a bit of lemon juice for that tang flavour. Enjoy!

Spiced Cauliflower Rice & Roasted Chickpeas

A hearty, delicious and healthy lunch is not always possible to put together especially on busy days where time is precious and list of to do's are too long!

Here's a quick meal including a side dish (now that's pretty fancy for a busy day lunch) which you can put together within minutes by preparing a few things the night before.

It's always a hit at our household and very healthy with a nice serve of veggies and protein :) Here is is, my SPICED CAULIFLOWER RICE & ROASTED CHICKPEAS.

Ingredients for Roasted Chickpeas: 1 can of preboiled chickpeas, chilli flakes, salt.

Make: Grab a thick bottomed pan and put in chilli flakes into a bit of oil, add the chickpeas (double washed out of can), salt to taste and roast till golden brown - should take just a few minutes. 

Ingredients for Spiced Cauliflower Rice: 1 cup of cooked rice (can be made night before), 1 cup of chopped cauliflower florets, half cup chopped carrots, handful of frozen peas or corn kernels, 1 fresh tomato chopped, 1 onion chopped, chilli powder, 1 spoon cumin seeds, 1 spoon mustard seeds, salt, olive oil, cumin powder.

Make: In a non stick pan, saute the onion in a bit of olive oil with cumin seeds and mustard seeds, then add all the chopped veggies. Roast on high flame for a few minutes, add cumin powder, chilli powder and salt. When mixed well, add in the cooked rice and combine well. Done! 

There it is, a healthy, hot cooked meal ready to enjoy for lunch :) 

Eggplant Potato Fry

Everyone has an all time favourite vegetable that they would include in any possible dish possible..! The humble eggplant (or aubergine or brinjal) is that very favourite of mine. Whether it's Indian, Asian or Italian cuisine that I'm cooking I'll take any chance to add some delicious eggplant :) 

On the health benefits side, it's a winner all round too. Not only low in calories and rich in antioxidants, the skin of eggplant is known to protect brain cells from damage due to free radicals. So with all these extremely great qualities, why not include eggplant as part of your regular diet!?

A regular dish in my kitchen which combines perfectly with rice, breads or roti, is my very simple EGGPLANT POTATO FRY - simple, delicious and super easy to create!

Ingredients: 1 large eggplant, 1 potato, 1 red capsicum (if desired), 1 onion, few strands coriander, for tempering - mustard seeds, cumin seeds, chilli flakes.

Make: Chop eggplant and other veggies into cubes. In a wide pan, temper the mustard seeds, cumin seeds and chilli flakes in a tablespoon of oil. Add chopped onion and saute till golden, add chopped eggplant and other veggies and saute. Add salt to taste. By the time the eggplant is well roasted and soft, all other veggies will also be cooked. Remove from flame and present it with coriander. Enjoy hot with rice, roti or your favourite breads.

Masala Puri

Anyone from the Indian subcontinent will agree to one things about food - there is nothing more tantilising and taste-buds satisfying than a spicy, tangy, fresh CHAAT!! Wheather it is a vada-pav on the side streets, pani puri from the carts, gobi manchurian from a fancy restaurant or good old sev puri made at home, a good Chaat can bring a smile on anyone's face :) 

Having visited the south of India recently, we made sure we indulged in one of our favourites, MASALA PURI. Being back home sweet home though, it was too tempting not to re-create that Masala Puri magic..so here it is, my version of the very famous Masala Puri, made in a quick and easy way!

Ingredients (for two servings): 1.5 cups of green peas, 1 potato, 1 red onion, 1 tomato, 1 carrot, corriander, few cinnamon sticks, few cloves, salt, chilli powder, chaat powder, 1 spoon garlic paste, crisp papdis (Indian wheat biscuits), sev.

Make: In a pan, lightly fry in a spoon of oil, chopped onion and garlic until golden brown. Add cinnamon sticks and cloves and fry lightly. Add the peas and chopped potatoes with half a glass of water. Add salt and cover. Simmer in low heat for 15 to 20 minutes and you should see the peas and potatoes have cooked well and become very soft. At this stage, add chilli powder and chaat powder. Simmer again for 5 to 10 minutes. This version requires no grinding etc, so is much quicker than the traditional version. 

Remove from heat and serve immediately (remove the cinnamon sticks & cloves before serving), with toppings of grated carrot, chopped tomato, roughly broken papdis, chopped onion, corriander and sev. Not only will it look mouth-watering, it will taste amazing with the mix of spicy and tangy flavours! Double the winner also as it only takes about half an hour to prepare :) 

 

Spicy Eggplant Curry

Who loves eggplant/aubergine/brinjal??? I would say most do, especially with some spice to tickle the taste-buds! Although it is low in nutritional benefits, it is also low in fat :) When you really love something you always find the positives in it...!

Eggplant dishes are a regular in our household and our favourite is my Spicy Eggplant Curry. Main ingredient is lots of fresh eggplant and you can use any other vegetables you choose to add to this deliciously spicy curry. Serve with hot rice or rotis and it's definitely a winner on any dinner table!

Here it is, my Spicy Eggplant Curry.

Ingredients for two serves: 1 large eggplant or couple of smaller sized, a few different vegetables (I used 1 capsicum, 1 tomato, 2 carrots), 1 onion chopped, 1 teaspoon crushed garlic, chilli flakes, cumin seeds, mustard seeds, garam masala (can be bought from Indian stores), 2 tablespoons tomato paste, 1 tablespoon oil and salt.

Make: In a wide non stick pan, heat the oil and throw in the chilli flakes, cumin seeds, mustard seeds, garlic and onion. Saute on medium flame until onion is clear and there is a lovely aroma. Add in the chopped eggplant and pan fry on high flame for 5 to 8 minutes until it is looking golden brown. Now add the remaining chopped vegetables and the garam masala and tomato paste. Pan fry together, occasionally stirring. Add salt to taste. If you like more spice, add extra chilli powder or fresh chopped chillies. Cover with a lid and let it cook for 5 to 8 minutes. You will know it is done when the vegetables are fully cooked. 

Serve with hot rice or rotis and enjoy!!